Error control codes provide redundancy in communications of a sequence of data symbols, which are exploited at a receiving end for reproducing the original sequence of data symbols in presence of noise and interference. Convolutional codes with Viterbi decoders have been used extensively to achieve reliable communication over power limited channels and interference limited channels in CDMA wireless communication systems. A new class of error correcting codes called turbo code provides further increase in performance over the classical codes. The decoding process for turbo code at a receiver involves iterative algorithms, which are complex and computationally intensive for the receiver.
Therefore, there is a need in the art for an improved decoder in a communication system where turbo code is used.